The company also attempted to create products appealing to specific viewers. YouTube released a mobile app known as YouTube Kids in 2015, designed to provide an experience optimized for children. It features a simplified user interface, curated selections of channels featuring age-appropriate content, and parental control features.[73] Also in 2015, YouTube launched YouTube Gaming—a video gaming-oriented vertical and app for videos and live streaming, intended to compete with the Amazon.com-owned Twitch.[74]
The company was attacked on April 3, 2018, when a shooting occurred at YouTube's headquarters in San Bruno, California, which wounded four and resulted in the death of the shooter.[75]
By February 2017, one billion hours of YouTube videos were being watched every day, and 400 hours worth of videos were uploaded every minute.[7][76] Two years later, the uploads had risen to more than 500 hours per minute.[8] During the COVID-19 pandemic, when most of the world was under stay-at-home orders, usage of services like YouTube significantly increased. One data firm[which?] estimated that YouTube was accounting for 15% of all internet traffic, twice its pre-pandemic level.[77] In response to EU officials requesting that such services reduce bandwidth as to make sure medical entities had sufficient bandwidth to share information, YouTube and Netflix said they would reduce streaming quality for at least thirty days as to cut bandwidth use of their services by 25% to comply with the EU's request.[78] YouTube later announced that they would continue with this move worldwide: "We continue to work closely with governments and network operators around the globe to do our part to minimize stress on the system during this unprecedented situation."[79]
After a 2018 complaint alleging violations of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA),[80] the company was fined $170 million by the FTC for collecting personal information from minors under the age of 13.[81] YouTube was also ordered to create systems to increase children's privacy.[82][83] Following criticisms of its implementation of those systems, YouTube started treating all videos designated as "made for kids" as liable under COPPA on January 6, 2020.[84][85] Joining the YouTube Kids app, the company created a supervised mode, designed more for tweens, in 2021.[86] Additionally, to compete with TikTok and Instagram Reels, YouTube released YouTube Shorts, a short-form video platform.[87]